FUEL firms across the UK have issued statements amid the ongoing fuel shortage crisis which has seen long queues outside petrol stations this weekend.

Soaring demand for fuel has seen forecourts across the UK run out as drivers struggle to fill up their cars.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is thought to be considering sending in troops to drive oil tankers after days of panic buying saw filling stations in many areas run dry.

With long queues at filling stations continuing over the weekend, Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng announced on Sunday he was temporarily suspending competition laws to allow the industry to share information so it can target areas where fuel supply is running low.

The move came after Mr Johnson said the Government was creating 5,000 three-month visas for foreign lorry drivers in an attempt to ease the pressure on hauliers which has been blamed over the problems.

A statement by Shell, ExxonMobile and other industry bodies again insisted there was no “national shortage of fuel” and that the pressures on supply were the result of “temporary spikes in customer demand”.

Here is what major fuel companies have said about the ongoing fuel crisis and their advice to drivers.

BP

A BP spokesman said: "We are experiencing fuel supply issues at some of our retail sites. This is being caused by a shortage of qualified drivers. The majority of the 1200 sites we supply remain supplied and open.

"However, at the moment we estimate that 10 to 15 per cent of sites in this network currently may not have one grade of fuel or another."

Tesco

Tesco has seen long queues over the weekend as drivers panic over having enough fuel to last into the week.

A Tesco spokesperson said: “We have good availability of fuel, and we’re working really hard to ensure regular deliveries to our petrol filling stations across the UK every day”.

Morrisons

Morrisons said: "It is a rapidly moving situation and we are working hard with our suppliers to ensure we can continue to keep our pumps open and serve our customers"

Shell

Shell has seen petrol stations run out of fuel following a soar in demand over the weekend.

A spokesperson for Shell said: "We are working hard to ensure supplies for customers. Since Friday we have been seeing a higher-than-normal demand across our network which is resulting in some sites running low on some grades."

Esso and Texaco

Forecourts belonging to BP, Shell and Texaco have been forced to change rules on filling up amid panic buying across the UK.

Petrol stations belonging to the three companies have introduced a £30 limit for driver who need to fill up as people continue to panic buy despite warnings not to.

Government response to fuel crisis

Mr Shapps said visas were “only one element” of the state intervention, with ministers planning to train 4,000 more lorry drivers, while the Army have been drafted in to provide extra HGV driving tests to reduce the “bottleneck” caused by the coronavirus pandemic shutdown.

Nearly one million letters will also be landing on the doormats of people with HGV licences in the coming days enticing them to return to the job now that wages have risen.

The Government is also keen to see better conditions in terms of truck-stop facilities as it bids to shift the workforce demographic from being mostly white, male and in their mid-50s.

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